Place
Topography
"The True West begins at the Missouri River." Driving westward over the river, rolling farmland abruptly changes to rugged, mostly treeless prairie. The Cheyenne River Sioux reservation consists of 4,000 square miles and two counties, Dewey and Ziebach. At first glance, it looks like rich farmland, but only 15% is farmable. The rest is either too rugged or" gumbo" (bottom muck from an ancient inland sea), suitable only for hay or other "grass" crops, and grazing livestock .
Checkerboarding
The 1868 Treaty at Fort Laramie confined four bands of Lakota to the Cheyenne River reservation, subdividing it into 160-acre parcels for assignment to individual Indians, with the intent that they would become farmers. In 1887 the U.S. government began assigning parcels to non-Indian homesteaders. Called "deeded land," this third of all land is scattered across the reservation. Most Indian lands are held in "trust" by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and can only be leased, not sold.
Climate
The reservation is part of a "steppe grassland" biome-- mostly found in the USA, Mongolia, Siberia, Tibet and China. It is semi-arid, with temperatures from minus 58 to plus 120 degrees, the greatest range of all biomes. Wind is almost constant. Violent storms can form abruptly, and temperature can drop 40-50 degrees in several hours.
Cultures
Two thirds of our people are tribal members, and one third, non-Native. Our people have comingled for generations, and few are "full blood." Tribal members are governed by federal and tribal laws, and non-members, by federal and state laws. Cultural practices range from traditional Lakota pow-wows to traditional cowboy rodeos, with many youth leaning to hip-hop. In everyday life, we mingle easily .
